[Blaseleblanc]

I figured I would try and plasti-dip my faux gas cap, my running pony grille, and my 3.7 emblems today after class.

I go to 3 stores before I can find plasti-dip and tape, but I get home and realize the guy gave me ELECTRICAL tape instead of painter's tape. Fuming, I go back and get the correct tape.

Then, I begin to set up everything to plasti-dip my emblem on the car. I try a million different ways of taping off the decklid and emblem with newspaper, fighting the wind. FINALLY I start spraying and everything looks amazing. I remembered someone saying that the tape needed to be peeled up while the plasti-dip was still wet so a nice edge formed. BULL. I pull it up and everything starts running, the wind and tape touch the wet plasti-dip and ruin the finish. I attempt to put the paper back on to cover the decklid as I give it a nice little spray to touch up that spot and I notice there is overspray all over my trunk, spoiler, lights, decklid, etc. I thought to myself no big deal, I'll just peel it off when it dries. WRONG.

Not only was my emblem ruined, but the small specks of overspray were unable to be pulled off. By the time I finished peeling off the crapjob I did on my emblem, it's pitch black at 5:00 pm... I have no light and I'm trying to rub the overspray off my car. Little did I know, plastidip SCRATCHES! I try and spray meguiar's quik detailer and wipe off the residue. NO GO. I try meguiar's compound to get rid of the scuffs and scratches, NO GO. I finally had to get out a freaking heavy duty sponge and wash the entire rear end to get rid of MOST of the overspray.

The end products:
20 dollars lost
My entire evening ruined
The paint on my decklid ruined
The paint on my trunk ruined
My raxiom aeros are completely scuffed from rubbing the plastidip off
There is plastidip stuck in all the small crevices of my emblem

Apparently there is a lot of misinformation going around about how "easy" and "harmless" and "quick" it is to plasti-dip things. IMO you need a lot of freaking experience painting things with this stuff. Don't believe everything you hear on the internet is what I've taken away from this experience.

 

[BboyGhost]

I thought you were supposed to pull the tape up when it dried.... And never spray that stuff in the wind or any spray type paint

 

[blackstangBlake]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune. I agree, I think your results would have been much better in a garage, although I know that's not always a possibility. I still haven't used the stuff.

 

[Blaseleblanc]

I thought you were supposed to pull the tape up when it dried.... And never spray that stuff in the wind or any spray type paint

I read the opposite. The forums at dipyourcar.com talk about how if you let the dip dry first, you pull up everything... The funniest thing too was I had not felt a gust of wind all day until the exact moment before I took off the paper. After, I figured it was no big deal to get a little dip on the paint since once it dries its supposed to peel off, so I continued sprayign. It only peels if you have it on think enough. Consistency overall is not what it looks like at all imo

 

[mnast52]

If you can't immediately tell the difference between electrical tape and painters tape, maybe you shouldn't be painting in the first place. Just saying...

 

[goldenr1]

Yeah, I think you're just frustrated at the whole situation, and I don't think plastidip is to blame. I have done my fair share of plasti-dipping and trust me, I know your frustration. Follow my instructions below to ensure the maximum frustration possible:

Do a simple test before you start spraying outdoors, even on a calm day - stand in front of what you want to paint. Tape it off. Pick up a can of plastidip - DO NOT spray yet. If the wind picks up, put the can down, the wind should die down. Once the wind dies down, pick the can up again and PRETEND to spray - the wind should pick back up.

Once the wind has picked up, begin spraying. The wind should continue to pick up until you have an uneven coat of plastidip all over your car. Once completed, set the can down, wait for the wind to die down (shouldn't be long), and begin to untape. At this point you should have 45-60 mph winds - that's ok! It's normal during outdoor plastidip sessions on calm days. Allow the wind to ruin all the work you've done over the last 2 hours.

Next step - crack open beer, laugh, pick it up again on the weekend.

Joking aside, here are a few tips I found helped me:

1. Yes, peel tape before it's dry but not IMMEDIATELY after spraying. Depending on how heavy a coat you sprayed, you may want to wait a minute.

2. Do not do it if it starts to get windy. It will make you sad. Put the can down, walk away, try another day.

3. Wait for excess and overspray to dry completely, then lightly rub with your finger to remove. It should come off easily, and always has for me. If you try a wet cloth it does not work as well, if you don't let it dry sufficiently it does not work as well, if you rub it hard it will not work as well and may damage your paint.

4. Peel and redo. It's cheap, buy 10 cans, spray it and if it's not perfect tape it off and do it again. You will thank yourself.

5. Drink. Not sure if you are old enough to do so legally, but I find I enjoy plastidipping a lot more with a few drinks in me, and I don't seem to get as frustrated ^^

 

[powerwhee]

Something like this happened to me the first time I tried to do my faux gas cap. I chalked it up to my inexperience with it. I haven't really used it on my at at all though since I messed up


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[Blaseleblanc]

If you can't immediately tell the difference between electrical tape and painters tape, maybe you shouldn't be painting in the first place. Just saying...

It's a mom and pop store and I told them what I needed and they bagged it up for me. I didn't ASK for electrical tape, I asked for blue painter's tape. Apparently they were so fixated on it being blue, they grabbed the first blue tape that came to mind. Didn't notice until I opened the bag at home, but thanks for the constructive criticism :bigthumbsup

 

[mustangkid9234]

It's a mom and pop store and I told them what I needed and they bagged it up for me. I didn't ASK for electrical tape, I asked for blue painter's tape. Apparently they were so fixated on it being blue, they grabbed the first blue tape that came to mind. Didn't notice until I opened the bag at home, but thanks for the constructive criticism :bigthumbsup

you said when you get home from school... high school or college?
And yea next time I vote you back the car partially in a garage and do it... or something or on the side of a building to block wind. I learned after many frustrating rush jobs to just wait another few hours and get it perfect

 

[Grim2013]

Yeah...I've plasti dipped a great many things, including racing stripes and wheels, and a few things happened to you, as other have pointed out:

1. It only comes off easily when it's on thick enough. A single light coat won't be easy to remove.
2. Your first coat was too thick. This is basic painting knowledge: First and second coats should be light. Just enough to get something on there. Third coat+ can be thicker. Thankfully this was plasti dip, which is easily reversible. If it won't peel off, spray more on and wait for it to dry. It will then be VERY easy to peel off. I promise.
3. If you want straight lines/sharp edges, YES you have to remove the tape right after you spray, but it doesn't have to be on the first coat. Mixed in with the paint is a thinner. When you spray on a new coat, it wets the others underneath it. So you should be able to pull the tap off after the third, thicker coat. If that doesn't leave a sharp edge, do it on the second coat instead.

Live and learn. Sorry you had to go through this frustration, though!

For the overspray, if rubbing it off with your finger doesn't work, it will 100% definitely come off once your wax or clay bar your car.

 

[Blaseleblanc]

Yeah...I've plasti dipped a great many things, including racing stripes and wheels, and a few things happened to you, as other have pointed out:

1. It only comes off easily when it's on thick enough. A single light coat won't be easy to remove.
2. Your first coat was too thick. This is basic painting knowledge: First and second coats should be light. Just enough to get something on there. Third coat+ can be thicker. Thankfully this was plasti dip, which is easily reversible. If it won't peel off, spray more on and wait for it to dry. It will then be VERY easy to peel off. I promise.
3. If you want straight lines/sharp edges, YES you have to remove the tape right after you spray, but it doesn't have to be on the first coat. Mixed in with the paint is a thinner. When you spray on a new coat, it wets the others underneath it. So you should be able to pull the tap off after the third, thicker coat. If that doesn't leave a sharp edge, do it on the second coat instead.

Live and learn. Sorry you had to go through this frustration, though!

For the overspray, if rubbing it off with your finger doesn't work, it will 100% definitely come off once your wax or clay bar your car.

Thanks for these tips- I didn't know that all coats were re-wet after re-spraying. I did do a light dusting at first, but everything took a very long time to dry. The light dusting took over 5 minutes to fully dry. I was under the impression from what i read that I had to act quickly as the coats were going to dry within like 30 seconds... My second coat I actually attempted to make opaque, which I guess was probably too thick. After I decided I was pulling it off, I attempted to finish drying it with a hairdryer and it STILL took 10 minutes to dry completely... I think I will just try and pull the faux gas cap off the car if I decide to try again and wait until it's warmer out. Apparently 65 degrees in the sun isn't hot enough for plastidip...

To the other poster, I am a second year college student. I got off at 2:30, procured my dip and was ready to start taping my car up at 3:30. Took me around an hour JUST to tape off my car because I was trying half a million different methods to tape off the circular gas cap with square tape and newspaper... In the end, I still had overspray going through the cracks and I didn't even know it. I hate DST more than anything, seriously.

 

[Joenpb]

Sorry you had so much trouble. The first thing I learned about Mustang mods was they're never as easy as they seem. The second thing I learned was taking my time and having patience went a long way to a successful mod, especially one that involves paint & finish. Good luck.

 

[lcurle]

4-5 coats at 10-15min in between. Use a microfiber cloth to remove overspray, this doesn't scratch paint when removed properly. 10%

 

[MustangBrooks]

My plastidip experience was quite simple. When I first messed with it I sprayed my pony symbol on my grill. The next day I noticed I had over spray on my hood (was a touch windy, I underestimated the wind) all I did was just wash my car and scrub just a touch harder on the hood and it removed the little specks of overspray easily.


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[Grabber2012]

Baselblanc, I've had a number of these disasters. Can't name the last one, but it seems there's one every two years or so. Your eloquence at describing the calamity was appreciated; now, go to the aftermarket websites, window shop for parts, and plan your revenge. Just make it some different department - drivetrain, suspension, et cetera - and not exterior appearance stuff, which will only take your mind back to the plasti-dip and re-infuriate you.

Ethanol and women are a good cure, too, I've proven.

 

[Blaseleblanc]

4-5 coats at 10-15min in between. Use a microfiber cloth to remove overspray, this doesn't scratch paint when removed properly. 10%

How much spray should a single coat be though for smooth results? I tried wiping it off with a microfiber, but apparently some dust had made its way onto my paint and when I was rubbing it to get the overspray off, I ground the dust in. Usually when I wipe my car I always use detailer so the dust isn't a problem, but detailer on plasti-dip only made the smearing worse... I'm gonna watch a few more videos today so I can re-try this tomorrow morning. I think I just need to tape off my paint better and more securely and be in less of a rush.

For the running pony on the front grille- should I take the grille off to spray it? I don't want to accidentally spray into my radiator or something and since it's such an irregular shape, I'd imagine it would be difficult to get a tight seal around it

 

[Strange Mud]

good to see you willing to try again.

 

[howisit305hp]

I just claybarred (excuse my spelling ) all the overspray off. Came off no problem with no scratches


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[kbonds1]

1)Mask all adjacent areas
2) Spray indoors away from wind and dust
3) Remove tape when product has dried
4) Enjoy your work


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[Rickyv90]

There's no reason to pull the tape off while wet if you aren't attempting a sharp line. All the things you are talking about have their own lines just tape a square around the emblem and faux gas cap. Let it dry and peel the excess. Unless you were attempting to do a black decklid or something. Same goes for the grille. Spend the time to tape it so you don't have to spend time rubbing overspray away. The only extra should be thick enough to peel right off. If you have overspray you didn't tape very well. The logic in saying plasti dip scratches is like saying water scratches makes no sense. Maybe what you used to rub it off scratched it or it wasn't entirely clean when you started.

To get a smooth finish 1st coat do a dusting. 2nd coat and on should be pretty heavy. Essentially it should have a even glossy look to it right after you spray.

Check this video out. Obviously it's not what you are doing but watch at 3 minutes. Notice how heavy he is putting it on and what it looks like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaAqqWOEkHs